Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. drew criticism Thursday after suggesting his department is working to “make the proof” linking Tylenol use during pregnancy to autism.
During a meeting of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet, Kennedy acknowledged that, at the moment, there is no such proof to support the claim made by the president last month that acetaminophen (an active ingredient in Tylenol) poses a risk to pregnant women.
Medical experts slammed the comment on X, formerly Twitter, and noted how that’s not how scientific experiments work. Former U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams, who served in Trump’s first administration, shared a thinking face emoji on social media in response. Other critics mocked Kennedy, a vaccine skeptic, for saying the quiet part out loud.